I've shown this pin cushion before, as it's one of the minis I made as part of my scene for the 2013 Wee Faerie Village in the Land of Oz exhibit at the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme, CT. Since I now have a regular-sized pin cushion of the same ilk, well it was just TIME for another Big & Little photo shoot.

In my teaching life at an after-school art program for middle-schoolers, this year I decided to have them make stuffed toys of their own design. So this has meant: SEWING! And for some of them, not only has this been the first time they've ever sewed by hand, but it's been the first time they've ever pinned two pieces of fabric together. So as the teacher that requires that I had to be a little more fundamental in how I approached the project. Which I am so OK with -- the fact that these kids are sitting there sewing their own toys makes me happy on a very basic level. (Of course when they're sticking pins through the skin on their fingertips I'm a little less-than-thrilled, but that's to be expected...) I will admit that it was kind of puzzling that they didn't know how to thread a needle, how to make a knot. But I suppose that's mostly puzzling for me because I grew up in a house where my mother always had a project going on, the majority of which involved sewing.

Today "This Week on Big & Little" makes its Triumphant Return! Did you ever think you'd see the day? Why or why not? Stove Sr. is an actual wood-burning stove. The next one up from that is a toy/possibly a sample that stove salesmen would bring to show customers. The other 2 stoves are pure toy, straight up. I've shown you them before, but you probably weren't paying attention. You do that a lot you know. It's beginning to be a bad habit.

This should really be called "This Week on Little and LittleR", as these groupings of bowling pins are BOTH minis. LIttle littles were a gift from my dear, kind, sweet, lovable cousin Amber, and I'm finally getting around to photo'ing them -- thanks again, ADV!

Big & Little cutting mats, tape, glue, and craft knives, all living together peaceably! (And they said it couldn't be done. Puh!) Big mat (or Big Matt, to his friends) is from my art school days. YES, IT'S THAT OLD.

A breakdown of the above:

1. Cutting mat was made from a piece of cardstock; lines made with a silver poster paint pen. Ideally, this should have been made from a sheet of craft foam, but I didn't have any on hand (shocking, I know), so I made it from what I DID have on hand. Namely, paper.

2. Tape was made from one strip of quilling paper, wrapped around my pinkie to get it started (use your own pinkie, mine will not be available), then glued as I went. The paper started off being yellow, but interestingly, when glue was added, it turned orange. Why this happened is another mystery for the ages.

3. Bottles of glue were made using white polymer clay, which were baked, painted, and had stickers added to them. A finishing touch for the top of the orange cap: a dot of white.

4. Paintbrushes were made from the hair dye samples that my sister gave me. (I had been debating about using some of the gray samples as the impetus behind creating a geriatric motorcycle gang or cheerleading squad, but until that happens...) I cut the "hair" down to size, then wrapped polymer clay around the metal handles. Then poked a hole through the clay that coincided with the gap in the metal handle to emulate the look of *real* paintbrush handles.

5. Books were made from a collection of handmade papers I have. I did a little research on the art of bookmaking, and so knew that I wanted to make the inside pages in the same way that "signatures" are made. I gussied up the look of the books using quilling papers, embroidery floss, and a button harvested from a doll's garment.

6. The bone folders were made from polymer clay. This color and shape would also work well for a little plant marker.

7. The awls were made by wrapping a tiny bit of polymer clay around little nails.

8. Spool of thread was made by wrapping... thread... around a small wooden spool (which you can get at most craft stores). Needles were formed from super skinny wire.

9. Rulers were made from a snipped bit of a wooden coffee stirrer, which was "painted" with a silver Sharpie, with rules drawn on with a black pen.

10. One toothpick became both a pencil and a craft knife (see image). Pencils were then painted. Craft knives were finished with handles being formed from polymer clay, then were baked, then a snippet of a tin stitching tile was glued on to create the blade. I've used tin stitching tiles before: to create dog tags for my gnome characters. My tin snips need to be sharpened, but happily, I have the hand strength of a lowland gorilla, so muscling through was not an issue for me... not to brag or anything...

11. Foam brushes were made from a dentist's giveway (see image), which I cut the foam from, then colored with the juice of a black Sharpie. The handles are skinny dowels.

So there you have it! Lots of stuff, explained! Need a better explanation? Let me know via a comment, and I'll try to help you with your craft dilemma.